Hydro – Part 3, Small Hydroelectric Plants

As a kid in San Diego in the 50’s, remember peering down at a nearly empty Lake Hodges after years of very little rain. Have also seen water levels at Lake Shasta at the top of the dam.

California is basically a desert that has always experienced droughts of varying severity and lengths.

Not so sure climate change is the key root cause, of California’s, rather more likely lies with a lot more people living in a desert than in the old days. That greatly magnifies the underlying problem of limited and unpredictable availability of water resources.
The ability of California hydro dams to provide electricity is similarly impacted. Today we are also seeing limitations on the normally abundant Pacific Northwest power production due to reduced water. That has happened in past, but not normally at the same time as water issues in California. Climate change? I doubt it, just the unpredictable and chaotic nature of the Wester climate. Should remember that not that long ago (thousands of years) Southern California was teeming with all types of large mammals that disappeared as the climate became drier. Man had nothing to do with that change in climate.